4 Minute Read
Prepare Your Heart
To the best of your ability, get rid of all distractions. Take a few minutes to breathe deeply and quiet yourself in the Lord’s presence. Then, ask the Lord to speak to you in this time. Let Him know that you will listen and make whatever adjustments He will reveal to you.
Read God’s Word
A Verse for Today
Slowly and reflectively read the following verse(s) and listen to what God will say to you through His written Word. Consider writing down any insights He reveals to you.
Matthew 21:12-13 (CSB): “Jesus went into the temple and threw out all those buying and selling. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those selling doves. He said to them, ‘It is written, my house will be called a house of prayer, but you are making it a den of thieves!’”
Reflecting on God’s Word
Anyone familiar with the story of Jesus’ life knows about the time He went into the Temple and stirred up some dust. People went to the Temple to worship, and Old Testament worshippers needed animals to sacrifice. So, there was money to be made by creating a market with all sorts of “worship” items in the Temple area.
The Bible promotes a good work ethic. It encourages people to work to provide for themselves and those they are responsible for. One of the most powerful statements on this matter is in 2 Thessalonians 3:10, which says: “If anyone isn’t willing to work, he should not eat.”
So, making money in the Temple wasn’t Jesus’ problem with those people. Instead, He was angry that they had polluted a worshipful environment. Instead of worshippers enjoying their experience with God in the Temple, they were probably incensed when they had to fork over an exorbitant amount of money to purchase their sacrificial animals and other items. Further, the smell and noise pollution of the chaotic market took away from their ability to enjoy worshipping God at the Temple.
Principle: Jesus had a problem with people who allowed things into the place of worship that took away from the experience of enjoying God.
Then, He told them what activity God enjoyed the most in that place. The Lord delighted to hear the prayers of His people. Jesus said: “It is written, my house will be called a house of prayer, …”
As a Christian living on our side of Acts 2, we realize that Jesus’ words are applied differently now. When He spoke to those people in the Temple and said that God’s House was to be called a house of prayer, He meant the rock building that He was standing in. When people showed up to that Temple, there may have been other acts of worship to engage in, but God wanted to hear them speak with Him in prayer.
That Jerusalem Temple no longer exists. That Temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. While that seemed like a very sad occasion, it wasn’t. God ordained it. Why? Because the Lord had already changed addresses. He hadn’t dwelt in that Jerusalem Temple for decades, maybe much longer than that! As far as He was concerned, it was an abandoned house that no longer served a purpose and could be torn down. He was much more concerned with His new house at His new address. What is His new address?
1 Corinthians 6:19 (CSB): “Don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? …” (emphasis mine)
If you are saved, then you, my friend, are God’s House! You are God’s Temple! Your body is His new address! Your body is your primary place of worship where you can enjoy being with Him every single moment of every single day because His Holy Spirit dwells inside of you!
So, as we draw this to a conclusion, what implication does this have on what Jesus said in the verses I have chosen for today? Simply this: Since God’s House is to be a house of prayer, and since our bodies (if we are saved) are God’s Temple, we should be about the regular business of praying! Yes, we must study our Bibles. Yes, we must serve others. Yes, we must give to our churches and to those in need. Yes to all of these things and more. But the one thing God seems to desire most is when we talk to Him in prayer.
Matthew 21:13 (CSB): “He said to them, ‘It is written, my house will be called a house of prayer, …’”
Is God’s house (your body) a house of prayer?
Are you living, moment-by-moment, in communion with Him?
If not, let Jesus clean it of the clutter hindering prayer so you can begin to enjoy Him more, and He can enjoy time with you.
Spend Time in Prayer
Lord Jesus, help me to realize that Christianity is not merely a religion with rules. It is so much more. At its core, it is a relationship with You. So, help me to eradicate (with the passion you had in cleaning out the Temple) whatever is keeping me from being that “house of prayer.” And then help me to experience the happiness that comes with connecting with the God of all creation and the One who died to bring me into a relationship with You. I pray this in Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Going Deeper
If you want to go deeper, check out this article by Got Questions: “Why does God call His house a house of prayer (Isaiah 56:7)?”
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Matt Ellis is the pastor of First Baptist Church in Polk City, Florida (fbcpolkcity.com).
Matt’s Musings 